A&A Pension vs. Disability Compensation

[sstormer]

Both parents recently moved to Assisted Living (father has terminal cancer, mother is Alzheimers).  Father is 95 and already receives 100 % Disability Compensation.  I read the rules for Aid and Attendance pension to say VA will only pay one, either A&A or Disability compensation, whichever is higher.  Is that correct?  Should I not bother filing because his monthly 100% Disability is higher than the max for A&A for both of them would be.  This may not be the case when Mother is a surviving spouse, so maybe I should just wait and file then.  Comments?

[vetadmin]

Those rules are for veterans who are NOT rated at 100%, and do not apply to your Dad.  You need to file ASAP a VA form 21-4138 Statement in Support of Claim stating that your Dad and Mom now require the assistance of others for their day-to-day living.  You do not have to complete the application process due to his rating and there is no financial test. He is entitled to an additional $654.00 (approximate) a month due to the 100%.

You should include a Physcian's Statement 21-2680 see this link for the form:
 http://www.veteranaid.org/docs/PhysicianStatementForA&A.pdf

Mention in the Statement in Support  that you (he) believes that his is eligible for an increase in his compensation pay for Special Monthly Compensation as he now requires the attendance of another person with bathing, dressing etc.

I would also include in the packet a Statement of Occupancy from the facility they are in.

Highly recommend you mail this Return Receipt and to the proper Pension center for the state they reside in.  You can find those addresses here on the forums or on the website.

This is really pretty great news for your Dad and Mom and hope this helps!

[sstormer]

Thank you for the quick reply. 

So in summary, I can file Statement in Support of Claim,VA 21-4138, for Dad now, and then get the other forms together, which is Physicians Statement 21-2680, and Statement of Occupancy from Assisted Living facility.  Is this really all that is required?  And what about cash assets they hold above $80k, do they need to be in a trust or out of their name, or what did you mean by "there is no financial test".

Does the cancer that forced him to Assisted Living have to be linked to the prior disability he receives compensation for?

Also, the Statement of Occupancy from the Assisted Living Facility, can I use the Nursing Home Status Statement from this website?

[vetadmin]

There is no financial test for the additional money when a veteran is rated 100%

You want to include the the other two documents and just make it a clean submission, and use the wording I used in the Statement of Support.


( he) believes that he is eligible for an increase in his compensation pay for Special Monthly Compensation as he and his spouse now require the attendance of another person with bathing, dressing etc.

Yes you can use the form on the homepage of the site.  Just make sure you cross through nursing home, and put "assisted living".